Chapter 008: Brother, It's Been a Long Time

Bincheng is a coastal city, so September here lacks the sweltering heat found in inland cities. Occasionally, a faintly salty sea breeze would drift by, carrying a hint of chill that crept under the skin. It was in this neither-hot-nor-cold season, thick with hormones, that the blockade at the entrance of Bincheng No. 1 High School finally came to an end.

As expected, Lin Yu and his four brothers emerged victorious, though not without incident. During the scuffle, seeing Qi Yue's attention fixed entirely on Lin Yu, Wang Yan, who kept glancing at her between the blows, gradually lost his composure, his strikes growing fiercer out of jealousy. The gangsters from outside the school who faced him were beaten black and blue, bleeding profusely; one even had his arm broken. In the end, it was Lin Yu who noticed things getting out of hand and stopped him before worse could happen. He knew well enough that Wang Yan's overreaction stemmed from jealousy.

Lin Yu found it impossible to put into words the complicated sympathy he felt for Wang Yan. In the end, he could only say to himself, “Sorry, brother. This time, I won’t step aside for you.”

After the farce ended, the battered thugs limped away, supporting each other, while the onlookers dispersed. The five victors, following their old habit, each took out a yuan and handed the money to Qi Yue to buy cigarettes; Yang Zhilin accompanied her.

Lin Yu watched the two tall figures disappear into the distance, heading toward the shop by the school gate. Then he turned back to his brothers, feigning annoyance as he grumbled, “Damn! You picked a fight and didn’t call me?”

After so many years, seeing his friends’ youthful faces again filled Lin Yu with a thrill he struggled to hide. He imitated his old tone and manner, questioning them without giving himself away.

Seeing his irritation, the short Zhang Zhilong gave a lewd grin and a suggestive look. “Haha, we were worried you’d be too tired after last night, so we didn’t call you! By the way, how was it? How many rounds did you go? Must’ve been great, huh? Was Sister Yue wild in bed or not? Did she make you feel alive?”

At this, the others burst into laughter, though Wang Yan’s smile was tinged with bitterness and forced cheer.

But Lin Yu, with the soul of a twenty-eight-year-old who had seen all sorts of people in the world, easily noticed Wang Yan’s discomfort. So he avoided mentioning what happened between him and Qi Yue, changed the subject, and asked, “So, what was the fight about this time? Did our youngest get into trouble with some girl again and attract a jealous rival?”

As he spoke, Lin Yu glanced at Dai Peng, whose face was even more beautiful than most women’s.

Dai Peng, nicknamed “Little Flirt,” was the youngest of the five. Because Lin Yu had skipped over the second spot and become number three, Dai Peng naturally became number six. He was strikingly handsome and extremely popular with girls, but he had a peculiar habit: he liked to collect virgins’ blood. After ruining a girl, he’d break up with her in less than a week. His tastes were odd—he cared only if the girl was a virgin, never about her looks. Whether it was a cute, delicate girl or a heavyset one, he treated them all the same—devoted while together, indifferent once apart. This twisted behavior got the group in trouble more often than not; seven out of ten fights started because of him. Strangely, none of the girls he had wronged ever hated him. In contrast, he was utterly loyal and sincere with his brothers.

“Third Brother, this time it wasn’t Little Flirt stealing someone else’s girl,” Zhang Chao, the most honest and low-key of the group, replied. He was a man of few words, loyal and solid as a tower. “At noon, we went to the Jinyi Arcade to play slots. Some boss’s little sister took a liking to Little Flirt and wanted him to be her boyfriend. But you know his rule: only virgins. This girl had dyed red hair, wore a spaghetti-strap vest with nothing underneath—you could tell what kind of girl she was. So Little Flirt turned her down, and that’s how the grudge started.”

Looking at Zhang Chao’s sturdy, imposing figure, Lin Yu’s eyes grew misty. He remembered vividly that, during a bar fight, Zhang Chao had stood alone at the door to let him and Wang Yan escape, refusing to let any enemy through, and was eventually hacked to death. In that moment, Zhang Chao’s heroism was reminiscent of Dian Wei, who blocked the gate when Zhang Xiu betrayed Cao Cao—one man holding off a thousand. At the crematorium, seeing him for the last time, Lin Yu had wished he was the one lying there, not Zhang Chao. They say men don’t cry easily, but that day, he shed tears for half a lifetime.

Thinking of this, Lin Yu’s eyes reddened as he punched Zhang Chao on the chest and said, “Hey, brother, long time no see.”

Only he knew how heavy that punch was, how much was contained in those simple words: brother, long time no see.

Zhang Chao was momentarily stunned, not understanding why Lin Yu spoke to him that way, but he didn’t ask. He just gave a simple, good-natured smile.

Just then, handsome Dai Peng cleared his throat, hands in his pockets, and teased, “Third Brother, you looked full of energy in that fight. Sister Yue walks just the same as before. Did you drink too much last night and couldn’t get it up? If you need something, I’ve got medicine. If that doesn’t work, we could take care of Sister Yue for you. We can’t let her become a widow at her age!”

“Get lost!” Lin Yu shot back, kicking at him.

Wang Yan, however, perked up at Dai Peng’s words and said, “That girl with Xiao Yue, isn’t she the school beauty, Yang Zhilin? Damn, she’s gorgeous! Such class—she just has that vibe! You think I have a chance?”

Lin Yu saw the shift in Wang Yan’s mood but felt nothing much about it; compared to brotherhood, such matters were trivial, as long as he could keep things under control.

He shook his head with a faint smile. “Yang Zhilin is the kind of girl untouched by the mundane world—not for us mortals. She’ll get into Tsinghua or Peking University. Forget it, big bro.”

He smiled as he spoke. Lin Yu knew there was an unbridgeable gulf between people like them and a favored child of heaven like Yang Zhilin. He vaguely remembered she’d been admitted to Peking University with high marks.

“Big bro, I’ve got a mirror here—why not take a look? See if you and Yang Zhilin make a good match. If you think you fit, we’ll all support you chasing her.” Zhang Zhilong joked, digging a small round red folding mirror out of his pocket.

“Agreed!” Dai Peng and Zhang Chao chimed in, their expressions odd.

Wang Yan, unfazed, replied, “No need. I know I’m good-looking every time I look in the mirror—better than that movie star Nicholas Tse. Of course I’m a match for Yang Zhilin.”

“Excellent. The king of conmen, Luo Sihai, once said the greatest cheat can’t fool himself. Today, you’ve proven it!” Zhang Zhilong grinned.

“Agreed!” The other three nodded.

At that, Wang Yan’s dark face flushed red, and after a long pause, he finally managed a single word: “Damn!”

Actually, they’d all taken some blows in the fight, but their easy banter made them forget the pain for a while.